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REPUBLIC OF ECUADOR Public Administration Country Profile Division for Public Administration and Development Management (DPADM) Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) United Nations November 2007 All papers, statistics and materials contained in the Country Profiles express entirely the opinion of the mentioned authors. They should not, unless otherwise mentioned, be attributed to the Secretariat of the United Nations. The designations employed and the presentation of material on maps in the Country Profiles do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Secretariat of the United Nations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. Table of Contents Table of Contents........................................................................................... 1 Ecuador ........................................................................................................ 2 1. General Information ................................................................................... 5 1.1 People.................................................................................................. 5 1.2 Economy .............................................................................................. 5 1.3 Public Spending ..................................................................................... 6 1.4 Public Sector Employment and Wages....................................................... 6 2. Legal Structure .......................................................................................... 7 2.1 Legislative Branch.................................................................................. 7 2.2 Executive Branch ................................................................................... 7 2.3 Judiciary Branch .................................................................................... 8 2.4 Local Government.................................................................................. 8 3. The State and Civil Society .......................................................................... 9 3.1 Ombudsperson ...................................................................................... 9 3.2 Civil Society and NGOs ........................................................................... 9 4. Civil Service .............................................................................................10 4.1 Legal basis...........................................................................................10 4.2 Recruitment .........................................................................................10 4.3 Promotion............................................................................................10 4.4 Remuneration ......................................................................................10 4.5 Training...............................................................................................10 4.6 Gender................................................................................................11 5. Ethics and Civil Service ..............................................................................12 5.1 Corruption ...........................................................................................12 5.2 Ethics..................................................................................................12 6. e-Government ..........................................................................................14 7. Links .......................................................................................................15 7.1 National sites .......................................................................................15 7.2 Miscellaneous sites................................................................................15 1 Ecuador Brazil Click here for map of Latin America and the Caribbean Government type Republic Independence 24 May 1822 (from Spain) Constitution 10 August 1998 Legal system Based on civil law system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction Administrative divisions Source: The World Factbook -Ecuador 22; Azuay, Bolivar, Canar, Carchi, Chimborazo, Cotopaxi, El Oro, Esmeraldas, Galapagos, Guayas, Imbabura, Loja, Los Rios, Manabi, MoronaSantiago, Napo, Orellana, Pastaza, Pichincha, Sucumbios, Tungurahua, Zamora-Chinchipe Source: The World Factbook – Ecuador 2 Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, by Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean on the west. The country also includes the Galápagos Islands in the Pacific, about 965 kilometers (600 miles) west of the mainland. Ecuador straddles the equator, from which it takes its name. Its capital city is Quito; its largest city is Guayaquil. Control over territory in the Amazon basin led to a long-lasting dispute between Ecuador and Peru. In 1941, amid fast-growing tensions between the two countries, war broke out. Peru claimed that Ecuador's military presence in Peruvian-claimed territory was an invasion; Ecuador, for its part, claimed that Peru had invaded Ecuador. In July 1941, troops were mobilized in both countries. Hostilities erupted on July 5, 1941, when Peruvian forces crossed the Zarumilla River at several locations, testing the strength and resolve of the Ecuadorian border troops. Finally, on July 23, 1941, the Peruvians launched a major invasion, crossing the Zarumilla River in force and advancing into the Ecuadorian province of El Oro. During the course of the war, Peru gained control over all the disputed territory and occupied the Ecuadorian province of El Oro, now Tumbes, and some parts of the province of Loja (65% of the former country), demanding that the Ecuadorian government give up its territorial claims. The Peruvian Navy blocked the port of Guayaquil, cutting supplies to the Ecuadorian troops. After a few weeks of war and under pressure by the U.S. and several Latin American nations, all fighting came to a stop. Ecuador and Peru came to an accord formalized in the Rio Protocol, signed on January 29, 1942, in favor of hemispheric unity against the Axis Powers in World War II. As a result of its victory, Peru was awarded the disputed territory. It would take two more undeclared wars before a peace agreement was finally reached in 1999 to end hostilities. Although Ecuador marked 28 years of civilian governance in 2007, the period has been marred by political instability. Starting with the mishandling of the country's debt during the 1970s military regime, the country has essentially been rendered ungovernable. Since the mid 1990s, the government of Ecuador has been characterized by a weak executive branch that struggles to appease the ruling classes represented in the legislative and judiciary. Protests in Quito have contributed to the mid-term ouster of Ecuador's last three democratically elected Presidents during the period 1996-2006. In January 2007, Rafael Correa took the presidential office for a four-year term as a result of an overwhelming victory in the September 2006 elections. New presidential and congressional elections may however be possible as early as 2008 depending on the conclusions of the Constituent Assembly elected in September 2007.The elections represented a power struggle for dominance between the traditional political parties and new political forces. The government has argued that a constitutional reform is needed to remove politicization in regulatory agencies and the judiciary and reduce the concentration of power in the political parties. The assembly is intended to limit the power of the traditional, pro-rich parties and Congress, which are regarded to be extremely corrupt, and allow greater democratic participation by the community through decreasing electorate sizes and allowing the recall of all elected officials. The traditional parties see the assembly as a threat to 3 their power, and refused to allow it without securing immunity from the assembly’s power for the 100-seat Congress. The majority party of the Constituent Assembly is the Acuerdo Pais (AP), a coalition led by Correa. The majority election of the AP to the Constituent Assembly reflects public disillusionment with the traditional parties who have typically been more interested in their own positions than advancing a reform agenda. Source: Economist Intelligence Unit- Ecuador Country Report; Government of Ecuador-Politics, www.presidencia.gov.ec/secciones 4 1. General Information 1.1 People Ecuador Argentina Chile Population 1 a 13,060,993 38,428 15,806 Female estimated population (,000), 2005 6,511,480 19,592 7,982 Male estimated population (,000), 2005 6,549,513 18,836 7,824 Sex ratio (males per 100 females), 2005 -- 96 98 1.2 1.17 1.23 Total estimated population (,000), 2005 Average annual rate of change of pop. (%), 2000-2005 Youth and Elderly Population b Total population under age 15 (%), 2005 32.6 27 27 Female population aged 60+ (%), 2005 8.4 i 15 12 -- 12 10 Male population aged 60+ (%), 2005 Human Settlements c Urban population (%), 2005 62.8 88 Rural population (%), 2005 37.8 12 14 Urban average annual rate of change in pop. (%), ‘00-‘05 2.29 1.35 1.48 Rural average annual rate of change in pop/ (%), ‘00-‘05 0.2 -0.06 -0.72 86 Education d Total school life expectancy, 2000/2006 -- Female school life expectancy, 2000/2006 -- Male school life expectancy, 2000/2006 -- i 14.3 i 15 i 13.5 ii 13 1 13 1 13 iii Female estimated adult (15+) illiteracy rate (%), 2005 9.1 3.2 4.4 Male estimated adult (15+) illiteracy rate (%), 2005 6.1 3.2ii 4.1iii Employment 1 2 2 e Unemployment rate (15+) (%), 2006 -- 15iv 7.9vi 1 iv Female adult (+15) economic activity rate (%), 2006 22.04 44 35vi 2 Male adult (+15) economic activity rate (%), 2006 56.07 73iv 73vi 2 i Notes: Age group 60+ as % of total population; Excluding the rural population of Rondonia, Acre, Amazonas, Roraima, Par and Amap, Month of September; v Aged 10 years and over, Months of May and October, 28 urban agglomerations; vi 2005, Fourth quarter of year 1.2 Economy Ecuador Argentina Chile 56,509 102,191 64,154 GDP 2 a GDP total (millions US$), 2006 2,499 2,694 4,118 24.5 401,817 148,945 2,720 10,594 9,561 6.5 11.1 8.8 Value added in industry (% of GDP), 2006 45.7 34.8 34.3 Value added in services (% of GDP), 2006 47.8 54.1 56.9 178.7 10.7 4.4 GDP per capita (US$), 2006 PPP GDP total (millions int. US$), 2006 PPP GDP per capita(int. US$), 2006 Sectors b Value added in agriculture (% of GDP), 2006 Miscellaneous c GDP implicit price deflator (annual % growth), 2006 Private consumption (% of GDP), 2006 64.9 62.7 63.3 Government consumption (% of GDP), 2006 11.0 11.4 11.4 1 United Nations Statistics Division: Statistics Division and Population Division of the UN Secretariat; b Statistics Division and Population Division of the UN Secretariat; c Population Division of the UN Secretariat; d1 UNESCO ; d2 UNESCO; e1 ILO; e2 ILO/OECD 2 World Bank - Data and Statistics: a Quick Reference Tables; b Data Profile Tables ; c Country at a Glance a 5 1.3 Public Spending Ecuador Argentina Chile Education (% of GNP), 1991 2.4 1.4i 3.3 a Education (% of GNP), 2002-05 6.4 3.5 3.6 a Public expenditures i Health (% of GDP), 1990 -- 4.2 2.2 Health (% of GDP), 2002-05 4.3 2.4ii 2.7 Military (% of GDP), 1990 2.4 1.3 3.6 b Military (% of GDP), 2005 2.0 1.3 3.3 b Total debt service (% of GDP), 1990 7.9 4.4 9.1 5.9 9.6 8.7 Total debt service (% of GDP), 2005 Notes: i Data refer to the ministry of education only; ii 1999 1.4 Public Sector Employment and Wages Ecuador 1991-1995 Data from the latest year available Ecuador 2002-2006 Latin America & Caribbean averageii 1996-2000 Excluding Caribbean average4 1996-2000 Middle income group average4 1996-2000 0.69 0.74 0.59 0.69 0.74 0.59 0.58 0.58 1.20 .. .. 0.70 .. .. 0.30 0.34 0.37 0.46 2.16 2.16 3.61 .. .. 6.05 Employment Civilian Central Governmentiii Sub-national Government5 Education employees Health employees Police Armed forces SOE Employees Total Public Employment (,000) (% pop.) (,000) (% pop.) (,000) (% pop.) 500.0 .. 0.31 .. 2,000 .. 1.26 .. 2,662 .. 1.67 .. 177.5 .. 0.11 .. (,000) .. .. (% pop.) .. .. 295.0 249.6 0.19 0.15 (,000) .. .. (% pop.) .. .. (,000) .. .. (% pop.) .. .. (,000) (% pop.) (,000) (% pop.) Wages Total Central gov't wage bill (% of GDP) .. 12.2 6.6 5.6 8.5 Total Central gov’t wage bill (% of exp) 8.1 16.5 20.3 19.7 21.6 Average gov't wage (,000 LCU) .. .. Real ave. gov’t wage ('97 price) (,000 LCU) .. .. 1.8 2.0 4.2 Average gov’t wage to per capita GDP ratio .. .. Source: World Bank - Public Sector Employment and Wages i a UNDP - Human Development Report 2007 Data refer to total public expenditure on education, including current and capital expenditures. iii Excluding education, health and police – if available (view Country Sources for further explanations). 6 2. Legal Structure Ecuador is a representative democracy. The government is divided into three branches: executive, legislative, and judicial. The country is separated into 21 provinces each of which is further divided into administrative municipalities (cantones) and parishes (parroquias). In 1998, a constitutional assembly was convened by popular mandate to revise Ecuador's Constitution. The new constitution strengthened the executive branch by eliminating mid-term congressional elections and by restricting Congress' power to challenge and remove cabinet ministers. Also, soon after the new Constitution took effect Congress passed a code of ethics that seeks to strengthen Ecuador's political parties, which historically have been small and weak. The code of ethics imposes penalties on party members who vote contrary to their party on key votes. A new constitutional assembly, to be elected September 2008, will rewrite the constitution yet again. Sources Economic Intelligence Unit; Ecuador Country Report, National Government of Ecuador www.presidencia.gov.ec 2.1 Legislative Branch Ecuador’s unicameral Congress is composed of 100 deputies. Women in parliament as of 2006 elections: 25% 25 Seats out of 100.i Ecuador's unicameral Congress passes laws, levies taxes, and approves international treaties and an annual budget proposed by the executive branch. Deputies are elected during multi-party elections for a four year term and represent one of Ecuador's 22 provinces. Voting is compulsory for all persons between the ages of 18 and 65. Fact box:: Congressional elections were last held in October 2006. The President of the Congress, which had previously been elected by Congress as a whole, according to the 1998 Constitution, is now chosen by the political party that received the highest percentage of the national vote. The President of Congress ranks after the President and Vice-President of the Republic. Source: Congreso Nacional de Ecuador, www.congreso.gov.ec; Legislative Branch-Ecuador, Political Database of the Americas, http://pdba.georgetown.edu/Legislative/legislative. 2.2 Executive Branch Cabinet of ministers: Appointed by the president Elections: Last held 4 December 2006 (next to be held December 2010, but constituent assembly could impose new elections as soon as the end of 2008) i Inter-Parliamentary Union - Women in National Parliaments 7 The President of the Republic presides over the executive branch and is the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces. The President is elected for a four year term by popular vote. The President determines the Fact box: Chief of state number and functions of the ministries that comprise the executive and head of branch and appoints the ministers of each bureau. The president also government: appoints the cabinet and provincial governors. Rafael Correra Source: Political Database of the Americas, http://pdba.georgetown.edu/; U.S. Library of CongressEcuador Country Study Delgado, took office January 15 2007 for a four year term 2.3 Judiciary Branch The supreme judicial power is vested in the Supreme Court, which has 30 Justices divided among ten chambers of three Justices each. Supreme Justices are elected for life terms The judicial branch consists of three organs of equal status and importance: the Supreme Court of Justice; the Fiscal Tribunal, which recognizes and resolves controversies arising between the revenue collecting administration and the taxpayers and determines tax obligations; and the Contentious Administrative Tribunal, which is primarily responsible for recognizing and resolving controversies arising in public administration. Located in Quito, these judicial bodies have jurisdiction over all of the national territory. Source: Consejo Nacional de la Judicatura, www.justiciaecuador.gov.ec 2.4 Local Government The republic is divided administratively into provinces, municipalities, and parishes. Provinces are governed by a governor, municipalities by a political chief, and parishes by a political lieutenant. These officials all answer to, and are appointed by, the president or the executive branch. The Ministry of National Defense administers the Galápagos Islands. Each of the twenty-one provinces has an autonomous provincial council, headed by a prefect who has only a deciding vote in case of ties in the council. The council, which has jurisdiction throughout the province and a seat in its capital, maintains public services, carries out public works, coordinates municipal activities, and informs the central government of budget expenditures. All provincial and municipal officials are elected for a four year period by direct and secret popular vote. In elections for mayor, president of the municipal council, and provincial prefect, the candidates who obtain the greatest number of votes are elected. Councils at both levels have functional, financial, and administrative autonomy. Their legislative decisions are issued in the form of ordinances. Source: Asociación de Municipalidades Ecuatorianas, www.ame.org.ec; U.S. Library of Congress-Ecuador Country Study 8 3. The State and Civil Society 3.1 Ombudsperson Although Ecuador does not have an official Ombudsperson office, there are other mechanisms that operate in promoting human rights. The Constituent Assembly, which was convoked by the Supreme Electoral Court in March 2007, has various representatives that are trying to guarantee the respect and promotion of human rights. However, specific safeguards of human rights such as good governance, appropriate legal structures, and impartial judicial institutions, are in a state of instability and are therefore impeding the development of human rights. Source: Derechos Humanos-Ecuador; www.derechos.org/ecuador 3.2 Civil Society and NGOs Civil society in Ecuador has gained a more vocal role in governance issues since the 1990s, due in part by the public’s growing disillusionment with traditional channels of political representation, increasing levels of public sector corruption, and weak formal accountability mechanisms. Both membership organizations of civil society and NGOs have played important roles in representing the demands of citizens. Membership organizations have been vocal advocates for the increased recognition of the rights of their members, demanding a more accountable and more inclusive governance system. To voice their discontent, these organizations have often resorted to staging mobilizations, some of which have contributed to oust incumbent presidents and change the course of political history. Such an example can be found in the impeachment of the Ecuadorian president in 1997. Following the impeachment, a National Constituent Assembly was called to draft a new Constitution. The new Constitution, which was approved in 1998, marked the first time that civil society actors played a key role in drafting the constitution and provided an opportunity for civil society to engage in a new arena. In recent years, a number of technically oriented NGOs have also emerged focusing on governance issues, public sector transparency, and state accountability. Many use a more collaborative approach of evidence-based negotiation and dialogue with the state to effect change. There are 2,690 NGOs operating in Ecuador, including both national and international organizations. Sources: Civil Society’s Role in Ecuador; www.sitersources.worldbank.org; Consejo Nacional de Modernizacion- Ecuador; www.ec-gov.net/; Programa de Proteccion Social-www.pps.gov.ec 9 4. Civil Service 4.1 Legal basis On March 6th 1964, the Law of Civil Service and Administration was promulgated by the Commission of Legislation. The law had been reformed substantially through various laws and decrees and eventually codified in April of 1978. The general disposition of the law is to guarantee efficiency in the public administration throughout the country. Source: Ley de Servicio Civil y Carrera Administrativa, www.oas.org/juridico/ 4.2 Recruitment Requirements for entrance into the civil service include satisfactory test scores on a national competitive exam and legal eligibility. Civil service recruitment is also contingent on position vacancies and candidate qualities. Candidates who are hired as civil servants are subject to additional tests and evaluation processes during their first six months of employment to ensure the candidate’s quality. Source: Ley de Servicio Civil y Carrera Administrativa, www.oas.org/juridico/ 4.3 Promotion The administration of civil service endorses a merit and evaluative system that guarantees the stability and suitability of servants. The National Director of Personnel administers an annual quality evaluation of civil servants. The intention of this evaluation is to stimulate the output and motivation of the workers by providing incentives such as pay increase, promotions, and honorary mentions. Qualifications for promotion include efficiency of the employees’ work, results of periodic evaluation, and years of service. Source: Ministerio de Obras Publicas- Ecuador; www.mtop.gov.ec 4.4 Remuneration Details regarding the management of remuneration are outlined under Chapter XI, Articles 78 through 83 of the Civil Service Law. The Civil Service system of remuneration is carried out by the National Director of Personnel. Salaries correspond and are adjusted according to the task and responsibilities of civil servant positions. Source Ley de Servicio Civil y Carrera Administrativa, www.oas.org/juridico/ 4.5 Training The State provides training programs that aim to improve and expand the knowledge of civil servants. The National Director of Personnel plans and directs the training courses that are obligatory for servants selected to partake in such courses. Source: Ley de Servicio Civil y Carrera Administrativa, www.oas.org/juridico/ 10 4.6 Gender According to the Minister of Public Works, the participation of women in civil servant positions is quite similar with the men’s sharing. Equal employment and salary benefits are promoted on an equal basis, regardless or gender. Source: Ministerio de Obras Publicas- Ecuador; www.mtop.gov.ec 11 5. Ethics and Civil Service 5.1 Corruption 2007 CPI Score relates to perceptions of the degree of corruption as seen by business people and country analysts and ranges between 10 (highly clean) and 0 (highly corrupt). Corruption Perceptions Index 2007 CPI Score Surveys Used Standard Deviation High-Low Range Number Inst. 90 percent confidence range Rank Country 1 Highly clean 9.7 8 0.3 9.2 - 10.0 4 9.5 – 9.9 150 Ecuador 2.1 5 -- -- -- 2.0 – 2.3 133 Highly corrupt 1.3 8 0.7 0.3 - 2.2 6 0.9 - 1.7 Source: Transparency International - Corruption Perceptions Index 2007 Surveys Used: Refers to the number of surveys that were used to assess a country's performance. 17 surveys were used and at least 3 surveys were required for a country to be included in the CPI. Standard Deviation: Indicates differences in the values of the sources. Values below 0.5 indicate agreement, values between 0.5 and c. 0.9 indicate some agreement, while values equal or larger than 1 indicate disagreement. High-Low Range: Provides the highest and lowest values of the sources. Number Institutions: Refers to the number of independent institutions that assessed a country's performance. Since some institutions provided more than one survey. 90 percent confidence range: Provides a range of possible values of the CPI score. With 5 percent probability the score is above this range and with another 5 percent it is below. Following the return to democracy in 1979, party splits, bureaucratic ineptitude and rampant corruption proliferated. Important reform measures (civil service reform, tax laws, banking regulation) stalled in a Congress dominated by fragmented parties and vocal opponents with vested interests to protect. As the economic situation has deteriorated since the 1980s, voters have reacted by blaming incumbents for their troubles and by periodically backing populist, anti-party candidates. This trend, coupled with the country’s economic problems and rampant corruption, has led to inconsistent economic and political policies from one administration to the next, and to the inability of elected presidents to complete their terms. According to Transparency International, Ecuador is perceived as the second most corrupt nation in Latin America after Paraguay. In 2003, a series of arms trafficking scandals threatened to undermine the generally positive reputation of one of the country’s most respected political institutions, the Ecuadorian military. Source: Congressional U.S. Research Service Report, www.fas.org; Transparency International 5.2 Ethics The Anticorruption Commission was created in February of 1997 to investigate acts of corruption and monitor administrative officers and penal processes. In 1998, the National Constituent Assembly transferred the responsibilities of the original commission to the newly institutionalized Commission of Civic Control of Corruption under Articles 220 and 221 of the 1998 Constitution of the Republic. 12 The Commission of Civic Control of Corruption is a constitutional organ that promotes authentic citizen participation, and transparency in public administration in order to prevent and fight corruption. The organization also aims to revitalize the collective conscious of individuals while diminishing impunity measures through independent investigations and sanctions. Source: Comision de Control Civico de la Corrupcion www.comisionanticorrupcion.com 13 6. e-Government 6.1 e-Government UNPAN link: The UN e-Government Readiness Knowledge Base provides extensive data and information on eGovernment Readiness and e-Participation and is frequently updated. The country profile for Ecuador on this database can be found at the following website: http://www.unpan.org/egovkb/ProfileCountry.aspx?ID=52 14 7. Links 7.1 National sites Authority Topic Presidency of Republic http://www.presidencia.gov.ec/ Government http://www.presidencia.gov.ec/ National Archive http://www.ane.gov.ec/ane/ Minister of Economics and Finance http://mef.gov.ec/portal/ Association of Municipalities http://www.ame.org.ec/ Consejo Nacional de la Judicatura http://www.justiciaecuador.gov.ec/ Constitutions of Ecuador http://pdba.georgetown.edu/Constitutions/Ecuador/ecuador.html Minister of Politics and Government http://www.mingobierno.gov.ec/ 7.2 Miscellaneous sites Institution Topic Centro Latinoamericano de Administración Para el Desarrollo (CLAD) http://www.clad.org.ec Development Gateway http://www.developmentgateway.org/countryprofile/... European Union (EU) http://europa.eu.int/comm/development/body/country/... Inter-American Development Bank (IADB) http://www.iadb.org Organization of American States (OAS) http://www.oas.org Unit for the Promotion of Democracy (UPD) - OAS http://www.upd.oas.org United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) http://www.pnud.org.ec/ UNPAN http://www.unpan.org/virtual_library-byregion.asp World Bank (WB) http://www.worldbank.org/ec 15